Large numbers of disposable earplugs are used in industrial plants, with each worker taking a pair of earplugs at a time. In some situations, a large box of earplugs is opened, and workers place their hands in the box to pick up a pair of earplugs. If a worker picks up more than two earplugs, he may simply throw the additional ones away. Furthermore, if a worker has dirty hands, he may leave dirt on other earplugs which other workers do not want to use. Another approach is to place each pair of earplugs in a separate plastic bag. The disposable earplugs may cost only several pennies apiece, so the need to place pairs of them in separate packages can add substantially to the cost of a box of several hundred earplugs. A dispenser which enabled "loose" earplugs to be used, with minimal wastage by workers taking more than two earplugs at a time and which avoided soiling of earplugs as a result of handling by workers, would be of considerable value.